Editor's letter: the science of the losing battle

TARA Parker-Pope's examination of weight loss research is one of the most lucid pieces I have read about a question that plagues many dieters.

TARA Parker-Pope's examination of the latest research into weight loss is one of the most lucid pieces I have read about a question that plagues many dieters: why do they tend to regain the weight they have lost even when they follow healthier eating regimes?

I'd always assumed that weight loss was a simple equation: eat less, exercise more.

But for the overweight, the reality is quite sobering: their bodies will start working overtime to regain the kilograms they have lost.

Parker-Pope's conclusions have created a stir in the US, especially from the weight loss industry. Nonetheless, her story should give us all food for thought.